We need to find a way, to get BGP introduced in the Knox Central area.

 

 

No. I've read some of their stuff on other message boards. We might be better off without 'em. :lol:

And yet when Knox Central wins in less than blowout fashion you consider it struggling.

 

I've noticed Knox Central has no fans on BGP and a lot of their really good wins go unnoticed and undiscussed. Maybe I'll promote them a bit. I hardly see a three point loss to Corbin on their home floor as a reason to write 'em off.

 

great points.

And yet when Knox Central wins in less than blowout fashion you consider it struggling.

 

I've noticed Knox Central has no fans on BGP and a lot of their really good wins go unnoticed and undiscussed. Maybe I'll promote them a bit. I hardly see a three point loss to Corbin on their home floor as a reason to write 'em off.

 

great points.

Just take a good look at who the refs were during the Pineville and Cumberland game. Now a loss is a loss, but Cumberland will be just fine. The regional tournament will be with another regions refs.

They are just like everybody else, you have some really good ones who can be honest and say yeah they played bad, they needed to shoot their free throws and maybe they could've pulled out a win, and then you have some that blame everything on everyone else officials, opposite players etc..

As for poor shooting by the Redskins, not only is Lynn Camp's gym not very good but Pineville usually holds their opponents to low percentage shooting. If you look at some of the final scores on their schedule they are typically very low scoring games. On any given night Pineville could beat Cumberland just like Cumberland could beat Pineville. Both of these teams are top 13th region teams. After the loss to Pineville, Cumberland should bounce back and by the end of the season could be ranked higher again (maybe even higher than Pineville).

 

What's wrong with Lynn Camp's gym? Is Pineville's gym better?

Les, did Barbourville become 10th by beating Lynn Camp in the All "A"? It seems to me that Bell or Middlesboro would be a better choice.

Did anybody see the 13th Region All A Championship Game?

What's wrong with Lynn Camp's gym? Is Pineville's gym better?

 

I never said that. I think both gyms aren't good at all. Pineville has an excuse though, its been a good 50 years since they have built one. Lynn Camp however was built what? 10 years ago? It isn't very good to be relatively new.

Just take a good look at who the refs were during the Pineville and Cumberland game. Now a loss is a loss, but Cumberland will be just fine. The regional tournament will be with another regions refs.

 

I love how you like to blame who the refs were and where they are from for who won. Because we all know thats what decides the outcome of games! I have seen on other boards where people were complaining about the refs being from Bell county. As far as I know, there is not a single referee in the 13th region that has ties to Pineville school system. If they are from Bell County they are more than likely agaisnt Pineville because they don't any other school to be good at sports besides Bell County High School.

 

I have said it once and I will say it again, referees do not decide the game. The play on the court decides it. I will say that referees are a phase of the game. How well the players react and play around that phase proves how good they are.

Pineville deserved the victory, there is no doubt about that. Pineville probably would have won that game no matter who the refs was because they were the better team that night. But I'm not naive enough to believe that they can't be biased with their calls. Are you sure that there were no ties to Pineville? Congrats Lions. Represent the 13th Region well in Richmond.

Les, did Barbourville become 10th by beating Lynn Camp in the All "A"? It seems to me that Bell or Middlesboro would be a better choice.

 

Bell has lost five or six in a row.

I have a couple of things, one I think that Les can rank them better than anyone, and that's why I never question them, because he does OUTSTANDING coverage of the 13th region and represents these athletes on Bluegrass Preps WELL...

 

Another thing is I saw a post about the Lynn Camp gym not being up to par...I for one LOVE this gym and I think it's a very hard place to play for teams, as well as Pineville, Pinevilles is a very old barn, but I don't see the problem with the gyms I really love them both.

 

Anyway, keep up the good work as always Les.

Boys Top 5

 

1. K. Central (14-4 overall, 9-1 vs. 13th Region foes)

What’s the scoop: What a weird and wacky high school basketball season it has been. With the Corbin Redhounds’ 25-point loss at home against South Laurel, Brandon Elam’s Knox Central Panthers become the third different team this season to capture the No. 1 rating. The Panthers will get to see if they deserve the No. 1 rating Friday on the road against No. 3 Corbin.

 

Surprise, surprise: Despite seeing his team claim this week’s No. 1 rating, while coming off a 70-61 win over Cawood, Elam wasn’t happy with his team’s effort against the Trojans.

“I wasn’t happy with anything in this game,” he said. “There was no effort to speak of. We were sleepwalking through the whole game. We jogged up and down the floor all night and never did anything correctly fundamentally speaking. I guess we are just truly lucky that we scored more points than they did.”

A few positives that came out of the win are Cody Miller’s 19-point scoring effort, along with Knox Central capturing its seventh win during its last eight tries.

 

What’s ahead: Things get a little bit tougher in the following week for the Panthers.

A road test against Corbin comes up Friday and on Jan. 31 Knox Central will get a solid test against 51st District foe Pineville.

 

2. South Laurel (15-5, 7-2)

What’s the scoop: Just when I thought you could stick a fork in them, Steve Wright’s South Laurel Cardinals come away with an impressive 61-36 road win over 50th District rival Corbin Tuesday.

Boy, oh boy, with the way things are going this season, the 13th Region title is up for grabs. I believe there are at least six to seven teams that have a legitimate shot at winning the thing.

 

Surprise, surprise: To be honest, I’m shocked with South Laurel’s win over the Redhounds.

Matt St. John only tallied two points and starting point guard Matt Gilbert didn’t play after having to set out again with an injury, but the Cardinals found a way to win.

The biggest reason South Laurel won might be credited to the play of Matt Watkins.

About three weeks ago, no one knew who Watkins was, but they do now.

He’s one of the best shooters in the region and led the way Tuesday with a game-high 21 points.

After losing at home on Dec. 14 by 21 points to Corbin, the Cardinals had a 47-point turnaround.

 

What’s ahead: South Laurel has a home date against Bell County Friday before having a chance to at least finish tied for first in the 50th District race with a home win against Whitley County Jan. 29.

 

3. Corbin (13-6, 7-1)

What’s the scoop: Despite losing to South Laurel Tuesday, I still believe Tony Pietrowski’s squad has the talent to win the 13th Region title.

Good teams have bumps in the road all the time, and the 26-point loss to the Cardinals could have been just that for Corbin.

For instance, in 2005, South Laurel was pummeled at home against Lexington Catholic, but recovered and eventually won the state championship.

Look for the Redhounds to recover quickly and assert themselves as one of the top teams in the 13th Region.

 

Surprise, surprise: No one in the 13th Region has played a tougher schedule than Corbin, but dating back to Dec. 23, the Redhounds are 4-4.

Corbin gets a chance for redemption today at Whitley County and at home Friday against No.1 Knox Central.

Look for Pietrowski to have his players ready to play in both games.

 

What’s ahead: The Redhounds have a tough three-game stretch ahead and I look for Corbin to pass all three beginning with today’s game against Whitley County.

The Redhounds follow with a home date against Knox Central Friday and then a road game against North Laurel on Jan. 29.

 

4. Cumberland (13-2, 8-0)

What’s the scoop: Are the Redskins the fourth best team in the region? To be honest, they could be No. 1.

But until things clear up a bit in the region, I’m sticking Jerry Edwards’ squad in this spot.

Why?

Well, to be honest, Cumberland’s schedule isn’t the strongest around and until the Redskins play some of the stronger teams in the region, they’ll be hanging around in the No. 2, 3 or 4 spot.

 

Surprise, surprise: The Redskins continue to remain the best defensive team in the 13th Region after limiting their opponents to an average of 42 points during Cumberland’s past two games.

The Redskins will get a test today at Lynn Camp High School against Pineville.

 

What’s ahead: Cumberland will play Pineville today and if the Redskins win, a date with either Harlan or Barbourville will take place Friday.

 

5. Jackson County (15-5, 5-3)

What’s the scoop: The Generals keep rolling along.

 

Surprise, surprise: Jackson County has won two games in a row since losing to Corbin on Jan. 15.

 

What’s ahead: Jackson County plays Lawrence County Jan. 26 and Clay County Feb. 1.

 

The Best of the Rest

 

No. 6 Pineville (17-2, 10-0)

What’s the scoop: The Mountain Lions might not be getting the respect they deserve. They’re undefeated in region play, while garnering the best record in the 13th Region.

If Pineville beats Cumberland today, then the Mountain Lions will be moving on up.

 

No. 7 Clay County (10-5, 5-1)

What’s the scoop: The Tigers picked up a big win over North Laurel this past week, while Justin Hobbs continues to impress.

 

No. 8 North Laurel (11-6, 2-4)

What’s the scoop: The Jaguars have to perform better against 13th Region teams.

 

No. 9 Whitley County (11-8, 3-5)

What’s the scoop: This is the highest Whitley County has been ranked since I’ve started these ratings three years ago.

 

No. 10 Barbourville (9-9, 5-6)

What’s the scoop: A win today would put the Tigers in the 13th Region Tournament All ‘A’ finals. I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again, Dinky Phipps is one of the best coaches around.

 

Just a thought:

1. South Laural

2. Corbin

3. Knox Central

4. Pineville

5.Cumberland

6. Jackson Co.

7. Clay Co.

8. North Laural

9. Barbourville

10. Harlan

Just a thought:

1. South Laural

2. Corbin

3. Knox Central

4. Pineville

5.Cumberland

6. Jackson Co.

7. Clay Co.

8. North Laural

9. Barbourville

10. Harlan

 

Harlan played well last week, but they lost to Middlesboro by 30 or so.

Bell is still a top 10 team. Everybody they lost to, I believe, is ranked ahead of them.